


Make a Wish

by miraculousstorytelling



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Beginnings, Alternate Universe, Flirty Lance, Galra Keith (Voltron), M/M, implied future relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-19
Updated: 2017-02-22
Packaged: 2018-09-25 15:45:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9827129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miraculousstorytelling/pseuds/miraculousstorytelling
Summary: All he asked for was a hot genie, but when Lance finds a wish-granting alien named Keith inside a lantern, he never expected wishing for an adventure would lead him to Voltron and the chance to save the universe.





	1. Space Lamp

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the [Voltron Primary Big Bang on tumblr.](http://voltronbigbang.tumblr.com/)  
> Beta'd by: [Lir.](http://queerallura.tumblr.com/) Thank you very much for your feedback!  
> Please also check out [the absolutely wonderful art](http://marzdraws.tumblr.com/post/157451611093/my-stuff-for-the-primary-big-bang-i-was-one-of) by [Marz!](https://marz-squared.tumblr.com/) Thank you so much! It looks wonderful!  
> And here is an [amazing comic of the first chapter](http://clairosene.tumblr.com/post/157457263521/hello-recently-or-not-recently-i-joined-the) by [Clairosene](http://clairosene.tumblr.com/) that you should also check out! Thank you! It looks fantastic!  
> And [one more fantastic piece of art](http://iamandasu.tumblr.com/post/157469245202/fanart-for-the-fic-making-a-wish-by-the) by [Amanda!](http://iamandasu.tumblr.com/) Thank you! It looks great!

"No, Lance, your mom does not want glow-in-the-dark hair dye for her birthday."

"Come on, who doesn't want glow-in-the-dark hair dye?!"

Hunk sighed as he watched his best friend's grin slowly fade. "You asked me to help you find a good gift. This is a bad gift."

"Fine," Lance huffed with a frown as he set the bottle down.

Perhaps a flea market hadn't been the best place to look for a gift, Lance thought sourly. After all, everything seemed either too mundane or too bizarre. The hair dye hadn't even been an entirely sincere suggestion, but after an hour of wandering, he was ready to go back home.

"Man, maybe I should just get her a gift card," Lance grumbled.

"There's a couple more stalls down here. Let's check them and call it a day if there's nothing good." Hunk walked down the path a little farther and Lance groaned in frustration, but he followed anyway.

"Maybe a massage place. She'd probably love that."

"You're the one who said you wanted to get a gift that she could, and I quote, feel your love and deep appreciation radiating from it as she held it in her hands." Hunk said, even employing finger quotes to make his point.

"That was before I knew how hard it would be to find something."

"You do this every year, man. How have you not figured this out yet?"

"Because every year you help me out," Lance said as he picked up a chipped hand mirror.

"Because your mom is a wonderful person, and she deserves something nice." Hunk gently took it from him and set it back on the table.

"A gift card is nice."

"You're the one who didn't want to get a gift card! Every year, I say, hey, Lance, maybe get her a nice gift card or dinner or make something! Every year, you say it's not personal enough or it's too much work or you can't boil water."

"I can't," Lance muttered, setting the mirror aside.

"I know."

"Sorry about your kitchen. Again."

Hunk sighed, trying to forget the blackened marks still staining his walls and the charred smell of lace curtains that still permeated the air. "It's okay. Just forget cooking. Why don't you just take everyone out for dinner?"

Lance shot him a look. "You've seen my family eat. You think I can afford to pay for dinner out?"

"Well, just take your mom."

"Trust me, that won't happen." He picked up a small jewelry box with a small burn in the top. "Once my sister hears we're going to dinner, she'll invite herself, and then everyone else will complain that they want to go, too, and mom won't be able to say no."

"All right, then you could-"

Lance gasped and set the jewelry box aside. "Look at this!" He picked up a small lamp. The glass siding was edged with what appeared to be copper, smudged and discolored from neglect. The glass itself was covered in brilliant reds and oranges, swirling in delicate floral patterns. Lance opened the lamp to see a short red candle settled in the small stand inside, and he grinned. "This is great! Mom would love this!"

Hunk examined it and nodded. "This looks really nice. I bet it looks amazing lit up. This might actually be good gift material."

"Oh, I see you're interested in my lamp!"

Lance and Hunk glanced up at the man who now stood in front of them. "Yeah!" Lance smiled. "How m-"

"This isn't an ordinary lamp, you know." The man plucked it from his hands and lowered his voice. "It came from the sky."

"Wait." Lance stared at the lamp. "You're saying this is a space lamp?"

Hunk grimaced. "It's not a space lamp."

"Yes, of course, it is!" The man grinned. "I watched it fall myself."

"There's no way that survived going through the atmosphere," Hunk said, folding his arms.

The man shrugged. "I saw it with my own eyes. I can't offer any better proof than that."

Hunk sighed and tugged Lance aside. "Look, it's a nice lamp, but there's no way it's from space."

"Yeah, but come on, it's perfect."

"Just don't let him trick you into paying too much for it."

Lance nodded and sent him a thumbs up. The gesture wasn't very reassuring, given Lance's track record with making good decisions, but still Hunk hoped for the best. Lance turned back to the man with the lamp and smiled. "How much for the lamp?"

"$2,000." He smiled back.

"Look, we both know this isn't a space lamp."

"It is!"

"How about $20."

"Now you're insulting me."

"You really think anyone's going to pay that much for a pretty lamp? We both know it's probably from a garage sale not from the sky." Lance shook his head. "Look, I'm willing to go up to $30. I'm flexible."

Hunk grimaced. "I think $30 is a little much."

"Fine." The man sighed. "$200. For a lamp from space."

"Hmmmm..." Lance made a show of thinking about it. "$40. Final offer."

"No deal."

"All right. Guess it's a gift card, then." Lance shrugged and started to walk away, Hunk following behind him.

"Wait, wait, wait. $50."

Lance grinned and turned to the man. "$45."

"Done."

Lance pulled out his wallet to pay for his purchase as the merchant wrapped it up for him and Hunk shook his head.

Lance happily led the way back to Hunk's car, a sensible model painted an unusual, warm yellow. "This is perfect. Mom's gonna love it."

"Just promise me you won't tell her it's a space lamp." Hunk strapped the lamp into the backseat just to be safe and slid into the driver's seat.

"Of course I'm going to tell her it came from space. She'll love it!"

"I dunno, man. She isn't as gullible as you. She'll see through it in a second."

"Gullible?!" Lance squawked, indignant. "I am not!"

Hunk chuckled. "Come on... You almost microwaved your phone to charge it cause someone on the Internet swore it worked."

"They had a video!"

"I told you it was fake!"

They bickered the entire twenty minute ride back to Lance's house. Hunk dropped him off with a grin, waving and promising to come back to visit after dinner. Lance managed to sneak the lamp upstairs and hid it in his overstuffed closet just in time to join the rest of the family for dinner.

 

"So, where were you this afternoon?" Lance's mother asked. "And why did you sneak upstairs?"

"It's a surprise, Mama, I can't tell you," Lance said between bites.

"Didn't you ever learn not to talk with your mouth full?" His younger sister grumbled from beside him. "You're so gross."

Lance smirked. "Hey, you want some seafood?"

"Ugh! You're the worst!" she whined as he stuck out his tongue to show off the food in his mouth.

 

Once he'd finished dinner, Lance sped through the dishes and bounded back upstairs calling out a quick goodnight and pecking his mother's cheek on the way.

She waved him off with a sigh and a reminder to pick up his room. Instead, he unpacked the lamp and tugged out an old t-shirt, ready to make the gift a little more presentable.

"Huh..." He held it up to the light and chuckled. "Man, too bad you don't come with a hot genie..." He gently rubbed the shirt over the copper material at the top. "Maybe if I just rub the side?"

He polished the glass on one side, pausing once he'd finished as though he expected something to happen. Of course, nothing did, and he laughed, the brief excitement wilting in his chest.

"Yeah, too bad, huh..."

He finished cleaning the lamp and smiled as he examined it from all angles. After some work, it sparkled in the sunlight shining through his window.

"Look at you now. You look great!" He rummaged around in a nearby drawer. "Now let's see what you look like lit up." After a couple clicks, the lighter produced enough flame for him to wave it over the blackened wick and light the candle. Lance closed the front of the lamp and set it down to admire the patterns it made on the wall. "Almost better than a genie..."

A thin wisp of smoke rose from the top. Lance smiled and watched it for a moment.

"Wait..."

The smoke was purple. Lance recoiled with a gasp, knocking the lamp to the ground in the process. Despite what he might have expected, the lamp didn't even crack, and the fire burned just as evenly as before, despite being sideways. Lance creeped closer and stared, afraid to reach out and touch it. He gently blew on the flame to try and douse it, but it didn't even budge. Slowly, the impossibly purple smoke drifted to the side and slowly coalesced into a distinctly human-like shape. Lance's jaw dropped as a man slowly formed in front of him, his skin a light purple, dressed in a fitted, black bodysuit.

The figure blinked for a moment, bright yellow eyes wide as he looked around. Finally, he settled on frowning and asked. "Where...and when am I?"

Lance screamed.


	2. An Alien Ghost?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance was (mostly) joking when he asked for a genie, but apparently the universe doesn't share his sense of humor.

The figure winced, shooting Lance a glare.

"Lance? Is everything alright?" Lance's mother called from downstairs.

Lance stared, briefly ignoring his mother's voice in his shock. "It's a ghost! An alien ghost!” He moved away, staring up at the man suddenly standing, no  _ hovering _ , in his room. “I knew it! I knew the lamp came from space!"

"I'm not a ghost!" he shot back.

"Lance?" Lance's mother called again.

"It's fine, Mama! Just a game!" It wouldn't be the first time she caught him overreacting to a game, and he couldn't very well tell her that he'd accidentally summoned a genie with the lamp he'd bought for her birthday.

The figure raised a brow, watching him quietly.

Lance could only imagine his mother sighing and shaking her head as she called back. "Okay! Keep it down. Your brother's resting."

"Sorry!" Lance returned his attention to the unexpected arrival in his room. "So...you're  _ not _ a ghost?"

"Do I look like a ghost?"

"I don't know!" Lance answered, gesturing wildly, voice rising in panic. "I've never seen a ghost before." Then, his eyes fell to the lamp lying on the floor beside the figure. Lance gasped. "Wait... Are you a genie?"

"Not exactly." He folded his arms over his chest. "I'm ac-"

"No way!" Lance laughed. "It really did come with a hot genie!" Now that he wasn't panicking, Lance found it much easier to actually pay attention to the details of the figure in front of him. He was shorter than Lance with a relatively humanoid build, although his purple skin made it clear he wasn’t actually human. However, his eyes were possibly the most alien part of him, all yellow with no pupils.

"I..." He paused and frowned. "Wait, what?"

Lance finally stood and approached him. "So," he grinned, his voice dropping to a more pleasant note. "What's your name?"

"Keith." He eyed Lance for a moment, a brow raised. As Lance approached him, he took a moment to appreciate just how well Keith filled out the fitted bodysuit. Genie or no, the guy was definitely attractive.

"I'm Lance. It's nice to meet y-" Lance's smile fell when his hand went right through Keith's arm. "What?"

"I don't have a body,” Keith deadpanned.

"Is that...normal for a genie?" Lance asked, staring at his hand, then up at Keith.

"I'm not a genie." Keith scowled.

"Then, what are you?"

Keith glanced around the room, curiously eyeing the posters and cluttered shelves lining Lance’s room. "Basically, I help you make wishes come true. You get three."

"What do you mean help me? You don't just make them happen?"

Keith sighed, glancing back at Lance. "Look, I have some abilities, but I can't just snap my fingers and do something."

"And when I use up the wishes, you-"

Keith shrugged. "I go back in the lamp."

Lance looked down at the small lamp and slowly picked it up. The flame was still burning, and the candle was somehow still as solid as it had been before Lance lit the wick. "So, you're stuck with me until you grant me all three of my wishes?"

"Basically." Keith watched Lance's examination of his home quietly, his expression flat.

"And I can wish for anything?" Lance asked, brushing his thumb over the glass that was unnaturally cool given the flame still burning inside it.

"Not anything. Like I said, I can't just make things happen."

"Yeah, yeah." Lance waved a hand. "Basically, I have three wishes."

"Yes,” Keith admitted, already dreading the direction of this conversation.

"And I can wish for anything I want."

Keith reluctantly nodded, his shoulders tense. "Yes."

Lance finally set the lamp down and looked Keith up and down. He smirked. "You know, I think I should call in some reinforcements for this. It's a big decision. I only have three, you know, and you're pretty cute. I'd hate to lose you so quickly."

Keith rolled his eyes. "I guess now's a good time to remind you I don't actually have a physical form."

"Doesn't mean you're not a hot genie." Lance pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Hunk's number.

"I'm not a genie."

"Hunk!" Lance grinned. "Hunk, get over here now! You won't believe this!"

 

Hunk arrived a few minutes later, slamming the car door and running inside in his haste to see exactly what Lance promised he had to see in person to believe. He waved and said a brief hello to Lance's mother before thundering up the stairs. "Lance, I swear, if this is just some dumb internet cat video again..." He froze when he opened the door and saw a purple figure glaring at his best friend. "Whaaaat's happening here?"

"I told you it was a space lamp!" Lance gestured to Keith with a grin.

"It's..." Hunk stepped forward. "No way.  _ No way _ ." He approached Keith slowly. "You're an alien?"

"I'm from another planet," Keith answered, eyeing him carefully.

"Whoa!" Hunk reached forward to touch Keith's elbow, his eyes widening when his hand passed right through Keith. "Are you a projection?"

"No." Keith glanced over at the lamp. "I'm incorporeal."

"He's a genie!" Lance beamed, holding up the lamp. "A real, actual genie!"

"I'm not a genie," Keith reminded him again.

"Then, what are you?" Hunk asked quietly.

"Sort of a wish granter."

"So, how are you different from a genie?" Hunk looked him over, waving a hand through Keith’s middle.

"I don't have magic." Keith grimaced. “And do you mind?”

“You don’t?” Lance looked down at the lamp and back up at Keith. "Then, how come this is still on fire?"

"It's..." Keith was quiet for a moment, brows furrowed. "I was created with magic. I don't know how it works."

"How long have you been like this?" Lance asked, finally setting the lamp down.

"I don't know."

"Where are you from?" Hunk asked, sitting on the edge of Lance's bed.

"It's in another solar system.” Keith looked away. “You won't know what it is."

"How did you get here?"

Keith shrugged.

Lance sat beside Hunk and smiled. "Look, does it really matter how he got here? The important question is what to do now that I have three wishes."

"I don’t know. I've heard genies can be really tricky." Hunk frowned. "Don't they try to twist your wishes and make your life terrible?"

"For the last time, I'm not a genie." Keith scowled. "And I just want to get your wishes over with."

"Ready to leave so soon?" Lance asked, a hand over his chest. "I'm hurt, Keith."

Keith looked away, scanning the walls of Lance's room instead of answering.

"What do you think I should wish for?" Lance turned to Hunk.

"Well, what do you want?"

Lance considered his answer for a moment. "I guess..." His eyes trailed over the posters hanging over his desk. The same, worn poster of the solar system that he'd kept since childhood still hung over his computer. It reminded him of where he wanted to go, even if he was currently stuck saving up for a chance to attend school that might get him there if he was lucky.

Hunk raised a brow. "You can take some time and think about it."

"Maybe..." Lance looked over at Hunk. "What would you wish for?"

"Me?" Hunk thought about it for a moment. "Well, I like learning and peace, and I like helping people, so I guess I'd wish for the resources to make that happen."

"What?" Lance scoffed. "That's so boring."

"Well, you asked what I'd wish for!" Hunk frowned and folded his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, but you could have anything, and you want things to be calm? You-" Lance paused and beamed. "Hunk, you genius. I know what I want."

"You do?"

Lance stood and turned to Keith. "I wish my buddy Hunk and I could go on the adventure of a lifetime."

Hunk groaned.

Keith smirked. "Done."

They vanished.


	3. The Blue Lion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strange how adventure actually looks a lot like a giant blue robot shaped like a lion.

"Lance, what did you do?!" Hunk shouted, his voice echoing off the walls of the stone cavern they’d suddenly appeared inside. "Where are we?"

Lance glanced over at Keith. "Good question. Where are we?"

Keith shrugged. "You wished for adventure."

"I thought you said you didn't have magic," Hunk shouted, frantically glancing around. "How did we get here?"

"I don't. That was the-" Keith frowned. "Look, if you make a wish, I get the ability to grant it."

"So, like conditional powers." Hunk suggested, the distraction of understanding Keith calming him somewhat as he examined his surroundings.

Keith nodded.

Lance was already wandering away from the other two, staring at the strange inscriptions on the side of the cave. "Are these...lions?"

Hunk scooped up the lamp and walked to Lance's side. "Yeah, it looks like it.” He leaned in to examine the markings, tracing one with his finger. “Guess we're still on Earth...or at least a planet that has lions."

Lance frowned. "This seems...familiar." He reached out to touch one of the carvings. Suddenly, the lines of the carving began to glow, filling the small cave with a brilliant, blue light. "Whoa!" Lance jerked back.

Hunk and Lance tensed when the floor cracked underneath them. Keith watched quietly as the ground crumbled, dumping the two underground and dragging his form down with his lamp. Lance managed to land half on the ground and half on Hunk, groaning when his side struck earth. Keith hovered over the two while Hunk and Lance grumbled and looked around.

"Some adventure..." Hunk mumbled, brushing dirt off his shirt. "What was that?"

"Hunk! Look!" Lance was already racing off to stand at the foot of a giant blue robotic lion. "Look at this!" He grinned.

Hunk followed, considerably more wary than Lance. "What is this thing?"

Keith stared up at it, eyes wide and lips set in a tight frown.

"I don't know, but it's gotta be part of the adventure, right? It looks like those carvings I touched." Lance leaned against the invisible barrier surrounding it. "We just have to get inside!"

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Hunk asked, pressing a hand to the barrier.

"I don't know." Lance swayed briefly from side to side. "But his eyes are totally following me. Don't you see it?"

Hunk glanced over at Keith. "What are we supposed to do?"

Keith shrugged. "It's your adventure."

"Some help you are,” Hunk grumbled.

Lance ran a hand over the barrier. "Maybe we just need to knock." He raised his hand and knocked twice.

A sudden vision filled his mind, and judging by Hunk's gasp, he saw it, too. An enormous robot, made of multi-colored limbs and a black head swooped down, brandishing a weapon and soaring through the stars. Without even understanding how he knew, Lance recognized this lion was a part of the giant creature in his mind. Voltron.

"Is that... is that the adventure?" Hunk managed to ask, eyes wide. "We get to form a giant robot and save the world?"

Keith blinked a few times, brows furrowed as he looked back up at the lion. "Like I said, it's your adventure. I can't tell you what it looks like."

Lance was already approaching the giant lion. "Hey there, Blue..." He grinned, leaning on the barrier. "Ready to go on an adventure?"

The hairs on his arms raised as a soft hum filled the air. Hunk yelped behind him as the lion dipped down to open its jaw and offer them entrance. Lance grinned and clambered inside, staring at the bright interior and calling down to Hunk to join him. Hunk looked over at Keith and reluctantly followed.

Lance was already seated in the pilot's seat, eagerly looking around at every button and screen. "This is so great! Where do you wanna go first, Hunk?"

"Ummm..." Hunk gripped the back of his chair, warily looking around at the foreign controls. “Lance, do you know how to fly this?”

“Yeah, of course,” Lance assured him with a small wave.

“Lance…” Hunk began. The lion closed his jaw and straightened, startling a brief shout out of Hunk.

Lance considered his options for a moment. "Maybe we should go try to find those other lions.” He looked back at Keith. “We're supposed to find the rest of Voltron, right?"

Keith frowned. "Like I said, it's your adventure."

"Come on, it's your adventure, too, Keith!" Lance protested. "You're part of the team."

"No, I'm just here until you make your other two wishes."

"Oh, don't be like that!" Lance rested a hand on the control panel. "You're one of us now!" A hum filled the room, and Lance grinned. "Now, let's go find some more lions!"

They flew out of the cave, hitting the wall often enough that Hunk began to turn green, and Keith snapped. "Are you sure you know how to fly?"

"Well, it's kind of a work in progress."

"You have to be kidding me,” Keith growled.

Hunk covered his mouth and closed his eyes. "Lance, slow down. I'm gonna get sick..."

Lance cheered when they managed to reach the outside, sunlight streaming in through the small window to the outside world. "We made it!"

"Yeah, congratulations, you managed to get outside," Keith muttered.

"Let's do some test flying." Lance gripped the controls.

"Can I watch from the ground?" Hunk asked, holding his stomach.

"Nope! No time!" Lance pushed forward, and the lion surged up, twirling and twisting in the air. "Oh, man! This is amazing!"

Hunk sank to his knees. "Lance! Come on!"

Keith rolled his eyes. "You have no idea what you're doing, do you?"

"I'm figuring it out!" Lance called back to him. "Why, do you know how to fly this thing?"

"No, just-" Keith scowled. "You're gonna crash!"

"Pfff... I'm not gonna-" Lance yelped, jerking up on the controls to level out when he saw just how close he was to the ground. "Okay, so maybe that was a close call."

"We're gonna die..." Hunk moaned into the floor.

"Hey, I have this under control!" Lance tilted the controls back. "Let's go see some space, guys." He glanced over at Keith. "Maybe you can even tell us where you're from. We could go visit."

Keith folded his arms over his chest, immediately tensing. "No."

"Oh, come on. It could be fun if-"

"Watch out!" Keith shouted, eyes going wide.

Lance yelped as a burst of energy hit the side of the lion. "Whoa!" He peered up. "Who's shooting at us?"

Keith stared, muttering a foreign word that Lance guessed was an alien curse. "You need to get out of here."

Hunk looked up at the ship. "Are those aliens? Are we being attacked by aliens?"

Lance barely managed to roll and dodge another hit. "They don't really seem friendly!"

"Why are we being attacked by aliens?" Hunk yelled.

"Maybe they want the lion!" Lance shouted back, hurriedly avoiding another series of shots aimed their way. His grip on the controls tightened. "What do we do?"

"Get out of here!" Keith snarled, fists clenched at his sides.

"Wait, do you know these guys?" Lance asked, flying the ship out past the large alien ship hovering just over Earth.

"Just trust me, you don't want them to catch you.” Keith glared at the ship with narrowed eyes.

Hunk frowned at Keith for a moment. "They're a lot bigger than us," he said finally, "So, if we fly out faster than them, we might be able to lose them."

"What about Earth?" Lance asked, daring a glance over his shoulder as he soared over the alien ship.

"They'll follow you," Keith said.

"How do you know?" Lance asked.

"Just trust me.” Keith answered.

Hunk eyed Keith again, but Lance simply took a deep breath and steadied his grip. "Okay. Everyone hold on!"


	4. The Yellow Lion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After narrowly escaping the Galra ships attacking them near Earth, Lance, Hunk, and Keith find themselves on another planet across the universe, once again under attack by Galra ships.

Hunk fell back into the wall lining the room with a soft grunt, and Keith's lamp fell to the ground. As fragile as it looked, it didn't even dent when it struck the metal floor. Lance was soaring into space, hardly paying attention to where he was going. He'd managed to put some distance between himself and the ship, but they were still following him.

"This isn't working!" Lance yelled, frantically dodging the long-distance attacks. "What do we do?"

"I don't know!" Hunk shouted back. "Panic?"

"Focus, Lance," Keith instructed, his tone bordering on anxious. "How are we getting out of this?"

"What?" Lance squawked. "I don't know!"

"I said focus!" Keith shouted.

Hunk scowled. "Hey, you're the one with magic around here!"

"I told you I don't have magic. I just-"

"Wait, I think..." The other two looked up at Lance when he spoke. "I think my lion's telling me something."

" _ Your _ lion?" Hunk wondered softly.

"What's it saying?" Keith asked.

"It's not really saying anything. It's more like a picture..." Lance frowned. "It kind of looks like a black hole..."

"Like a wormhole?" Keith prompted.

"Maybe," Lance murmured.

"Where?"

Lance looked up and pointed ahead.

Hunk stared as the space in front of them warped and shifted in place, leaving behind a dark circle, shimmering around the edges. "What is that?"

"A way out." Keith answered, smiling and finally relaxing.

"Whoa, hold on. We don't even know where it's going." Hunk glanced over at Keith. "How do you know it's safe?"

"I don't,” Keith answered.

“Well…” Lance guided the lion towards the wormhole with a small shrug. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"We could be crushed in a black hole and die," Hunk deadpanned.

"Oh." Lance paused, the Blue Lion hovering in front of the wormhole. “Really?”

"Look, it's safer than staying here," Keith shot Hunk a glare.

"How do you know that?" Hunk asked, turning on Keith. "And how did you know they wanted the lion in the first place? Do you know these guys?"

Keith ignored him. "Lance, what's your lion telling you?"

"I..." Lance closed his eyes and concentrated. "Nothing."

"Forget the lion. How do we know they aren't after Keith?" Hunk gestured towards Keith as he shouted.

"Trust me. They're not." Keith frowned. "We need to go."

"Wait, how do you know they aren't?" Lance asked, looking over at Keith with the barest hint of suspicion in his eyes.

"Look, you can't let them get the Blue Lion," Keith snapped. "Go through the wormhole!"

"Why should we trust you?" Hunk asked.

Keith growled, finally turning to face Hunk. "Because they don't remember me, but if they get their hands on the Blue Lion, they're one step closer to Voltron, and if they get Voltron, nothing can ever stop them."

"Wait, you-"

Keith cut him off, a note of desperation in his voice. "I'm stuck like this because I was trying to stop that from happening. We need to go!"

Lance frowned and took a deep breath. "I'm going for it."

“What?” Hunk stared as Lance flew forward, sending them through the wormhole just as the lights surrounding it began to dim. They barely managed to make it through to the other side before it collapsed.

The dull hum of machinery filled the suddenly quiet room while Lance looked around at the empty space surrounding them and Hunk steadied his breathing. Everything outside looked the same, although Lance knew it wasn’t.

“Well…” Lance finally broke the silence. “We’re not dead.” 

"Where are we?" Hunk asked, finally spotting a planet below them.

Lance jumped to his feet and turned to face Keith. "Okay, we need some answers. How did you know them?"

Keith ignored Lance’s question, instead staring out at the barren planet Hunk was examining. "We're probably at another planet with one of the lions."

"Hey," Lance stepped closer, repeating his question. "How did you know the aliens chasing us?"

Keith avoided his eyes. "That's not important."

“Not important?” Lance repeated, voice raising in frustration. "Listen, I'm not flying this lion anywhere until you tell us."

"Fine,” Keith shrugged, easily calling his bluff. “Stay up here.”

Lance scowled. "Hey, cut the hot and mysterious act for a second. We're a team. You need to tell us what you know."

Keith rolled his eyes. "That was a Galra ship. They've taken over most of the universe, and Voltron is the one thing that can stop them. You wanted an adventure, and it looks like this is the one you got."

"And what about you being stuck like this?"

Keith grimaced. "That's a long story."

"We've got time,” Lance shot back.

"No, we don't. No, we don't!" Hunk shouted, pointing at the ships flying up to meet them.

Lance yelped and quickly jumped back into the pilot’s seat.

"They don't look friendly!" Hunk gripped the back of Lance’s chair. “Where are the friendly aliens?  _ Are  _ there friendly aliens?”

“Keith,” Lance flew forward, avoiding another round of fire. "Is there another lion here?"

"I don't know," Keith answered, "Your lion sent us here."

"Why is it suddenly Lance's lion?" Hunk asked, gripping the back of Lance's seat.

"Because it chose him."

"But, you sent us there!" Hunk protested.

Keith frowned. "Yeah, and apparently it liked him."

"Can we focus on the guys shooting at us?" Lance shouted, flying down closer to the ground. "And why we're here?"

"Wait, these guys are purple, too?" Hunk asked, staring down at the workers running away from them on the planet.

"Galra," Keith muttered under his breath. "There's probably another lion here, then."

"What about in that cave?" Lance asked, pointing at the cave in front of them.

"Maybe, but-"

Lance interrupted, "Hunk, I'm dropping you off. You find the lion, and I'll distract them."

"What? You can't just-"

"Take Keith!"

Keith frowned. "Hold on-"

Lance slapped a button on the controls that dropped Hunk and the lamp on the ground below. Grumbling, Hunk scooped up the lamp. "Oh, sure. You go fly around with the cool robot lion and leave me with the purple genie."

"I'm not a genie."

Hunk ducked under the controls to the lift beside them. "Right, you just grant three wishes."

"I-"

"And you have magic to make the wishes come true." He disconnected and reconnected wires as he spoke. "And you live in a lamp. It's so different."

Keith glared.

The lift rumbled to life beside them, and Hunk grabbed the lamp before jumping on and going underground. "Tell me, how are you different from a genie exactly?"

"I'm not from Earth, and I'm real."

"How do you know genies aren't from another planet?"

Keith scowled. "Because genies aren't real."

"So, if you're not a genie, what  _ are _ you?"

"I'm wish..." Keith cut himself off with a grimace. "I'm a wish granter."

"And that's not a genie?" Hunk stepped out into the underground cave.

"Trust me. It's different."

Hunk's eyes widened as he stared ahead. A large carving of a lion took up most of the space on the wall in front of him. He stepped forward. "So, is this going to be my lion?"

"If it likes you, maybe,” Keith answered.

Hunk placed his hand on the carving, brows furrowed. He jumped back when the lines began to glow and pulse yellow, exactly like the carvings in the cavern where they’d found the Blue Lion. Keith smiled from behind him, and Hunk barely caught sight of it before he saw the large drill beside them. "Well, since we didn't fall through the floor this time, I guess we have to find another way in." He climbed into the driver's seat of the drill and set Keith's lamp beside him. "Ready?"

"Go for it,” Keith nodded.

Hunk bent down to hotwire the machine, muttering to himself about why they couldn't just leave the keys inside while he did. When the engine roared to life, he sat up and drove it forward, quickly boring through the wall. He covered his eyes while the dust settled and brushed off the debris when they arrived at the other side.

An enormous yellow lion, bigger even than the lion Lance was currently piloting, stood in front of them. Hunk stared up at it while he walked closer.

"Hey!" Keith pointed to his lamp still resting in the drill machine, and Hunk ran back to pick it up.

"Sorry. It's just..." He rested his hand on the barrier around the lion. "Look at it." Hunk frowned. "How am I supposed to get inside? Do I knock?"

Keith shrugged. "Maybe."

"Hmmm..." Hunk knocked on the barrier and looked up at the unmoving lion. "That's a no."

"Look, this is your lion." Keith stepped through the barrier and turned back to face him. "How would you want someone to wake you up?"

Hunk considered his answer for a moment. Then, he smiled and ran his hand over the barrier. His voice lowered, soft and sweet while he murmured, "Hey, buddy. Time to go save the universe. Can you let me in?"

The lion's eyes lit up, and another hum filled the air. Hunk gasped, and the fine hairs along the back of his neck stood on end as the barrier suddenly lit up and vanished.

"Whoa..."

"Good job.” Keith smiled. “Now, come on.” Keith turned to look up at the Yellow Lion. “Lance could probably use your help."

Hunk paused and looked over at Keith. "How do you know all this?"

Keith shook his head. "Let's get in the lion."

Hunk frowned, but he didn't argue. The Yellow Lion bent down to allow them inside, and Hunk sat in the pilot's chair, thoughtfully looking around at the various controls and monitors. Just as he was about to ask how he was supposed to fly a giant robot lion when he'd never so much as flown a toy plane before, a series of images flooded his mind. "Thanks..." he whispered upon realizing his lion was sending him instructions. Moments later, he was bursting out into bright sunlight.


	5. Altean Princess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, Lance, your princess is in this castle, but she's not interested.

Lance had expected some difficulty evading attacks while he waited for his teammates to finish collecting the lion he was sure they'd find somewhere in the cave where he'd dropped Hunk and Keith. What he hadn't expected was the sheer number of attackers he'd need to contend with and the amount of damage his lion would sustain in the process.

He could tell Blue was on its last leg, alarms blaring to life all around him, and he kept a close eye out for any sign that reinforcements might arrive soon. They had to, after all, he was the hero in this adventure, and everyone knew that the hero didn't die or get captured so early on in the story. He'd be fine. He had to be-

A well-aimed strike rocked the lion, and Lance swore under his breath. "Okay, any minute now, guys!"

He darted through a narrow passage, cringing when he felt the side of his lion scrape over the cliffs surrounding him. This was bad. Reality was setting in fast, and he had no idea how he'd manage to survive this without some kind of help. His lion wouldn't last much longer and... He stared down at the same cave where he'd dropped off the rest of his small team. He was cornered. He turned to look at the small army of ships that had him trapped, and he closed his eyes. This was it. A bright flash heralded their final attack, and he winced when a loud boom filled the air.

But, nothing hit him.

He finally chanced a look and cheered when he saw that he was being shielded by a yellow lion even larger than his. "Hunk! Is that you, buddy?"

Hunk's face popped up on the side of his monitor. "Lance! Man, I was trying to get out of the way there. Are you okay?" He frowned. "What's all that beeping?"

"Well, I'm fine, but Blue isn't doing so well."

"Seriously?" Keith asked over Hunk’s shoulder with a disapproving frown. "You already managed to wreck your lion?"

"Hey! I was being attacked!" Lance protested, gesturing to the ships still firing at them.

"We need to get out of here," Hunk said, guiding the Yellow Lion to pick up the Blue Lion in its jaws. "Come on."

They flew up and out of the planet's orbit, Hunk easily ignoring the few hits their attackers managed to land on his lion.

"Where do we go now?" Lance asked, relieved to see that some of the alarms in his lion had silenced now that they were out of immediate danger.

"I don't know. Hear anything else from your lion?" Hunk asked, glancing around.

"Nope. Blue's been hit pretty hard. Yours?"

"No.” Hunk sighed.

"Looks like it doesn't have to." Keith pointed ahead, and Hunk sank back in his seat when he saw the glowing wormhole in front of them.

"Thank you..." Hunk murmured to his lion, patting the controls. A soft, appreciative purr filled the room, and Hunk smiled, already warming to the Yellow Lion.

He flew through the wormhole, curiously watching for any sign of where they might appear next. Keith's eyes widened when he saw the large structure in front of them. "Is that...?"

"Whoa!" Lance sat up. "Is that a castle?"

"Looks like it." Hunk looked over at Keith. "Do you know this place?"

"No,” Keith answered a little too quickly.

Hunk frowned, but he was willing to let the issue go for now. After all, it was hard to distrust him after seeing how genuinely happy Keith had been when the Yellow Lion responded to Hunk. "Any ideas where we are?"

"Maybe." They flew closer, and Keith sighed, reluctant to answer. "There's a rumor about a castle where the Altean king sent his daughter to keep her safe."

"Altean king?" Hunk asked.

"Wait, so you're telling me there's a princess in that castle?" Lance cut in, eagerly leaning forward.

"I don't know," Keith answered, irritable without quite understanding why. "Altea was the kingdom responsible for creating Voltron. Zarkon wiped out the entire planet thousands of years ago."

"Zarkon?" Hunk asked, brows furrowed.

"He's the ruler of the Galra." Keith grimaced. "And he's slowly taking over the entire universe and destroying planets everywhere he goes."

"Whoa," Lance breathed. "And...Voltron is supposed to stop him?"

Keith smirked. "You said you wanted an adventure."

"All right. I'm gonna land." Hunk flew forward and touched down in what appeared to be a courtyard. The Yellow Lion set the Blue Lion down, and Hunk grimaced when he saw just how much damage it had sustained in the fighting. "Lance, wow..."

"Yeah, I know." Lance climbed out and frowned, "Sorry, Blue." He tensed when a gentle shock traveled through his fingertips. The blue lion's eyes sparked out, and Lance bit his lip. "We'll fix you up. I promise."

Hunk dropped to the ground beside him and offered Lance the lamp. Lance nodded and accepted it, Keith trailing behind them as they entered the castle.

"So, any idea where this princess is?" Lance asked. "Cause this is a pretty big castle, and it could take a while-"

"Hold for identity scan."

Lance and Hunk jumped when the computerized voice filled the air. "Scan?" Hunk asked, his voice raising in pitch.

Before they could protest, lights shone beside the steps in front of them to guide them, and Hunk relaxed. Lance grinned. "See? Nothing to worry about."

Keith glanced up at the walls, frowning. "That was too easy."

"Maybe the lions told the castle about us," Lance said, already walking up the stairs. "Or maybe it just liked us. After all, we're pretty great if you ask..." His voice trailed off when he saw the control room. Hunk looked over the futuristic equipment, but Lance only had eyes for the woman in the glass chamber. "Is that the princess?"

Keith shrugged. "Ask her."

Lance stepped forward. "How do I wake her up?"

"No clue." Keith looked away, folding his arms over his chest.

"You're acting moodier than normal." Lance raised a brow.

"We just met.” Keith shot back. “How do you know what's normal for me?"

"Hmmm. What could it be?" Lance considered for a few seconds then brightened as he understood. "Why, Keith," he teased, "Are you jealous I'm interested in the princess?"

"No," Keith answered, sending him a sharp look.

"Don't worry. I still think you're hotter." Lance grinned, leaning on the pod. "It's just not every day you get to meet a princess."

"I'm not jealous."

"Sure, and I'm not-" Lance yelped, nearly toppling over when the pod opened and the woman inside fell forward. "Whoa!" He blushed and stared down at her. "Are you okay?"

She groaned and looked up at him. "Who are you?" She straightened and looked at Lance. "Where am I?"

Lance waved, grinning down at her. "I'm Lance. Where, I'm not really sure, but-"

She quickly pinned him to the ground, knocking the lamp out of his hands. "Where's my father? What have you done with him?"

"I don't know! I've never met your father!" Lance ground out, trying to free his arm from her firm grip. "Keith, a little help?"

Keith spoke up. "Are you Princess Allura?"

She paused and looked him over, tensing briefly. “You-” Her eyes fell to the lamp on the ground, and her anger melted. "So, Zarkon is still using that curse?"

"Curse?" Hunk asked.

Allura finally let Lance up. "They don't know?"

"I haven't exactly explained." Keith looked over at the other occupied pod. "Is this your advisor?"

She glanced over and nodded.

"Hunk, did you figure out how to let them out?" Lance asked, gently rolling his shoulder. He stepped away from Allura to pick up Keith’s lamp.

"I think so," Hunk answered, tapping a few buttons as he did. "Maybe."

Allura reached over and tapped the screen. The second pod opened with a brief hiss, and a man stepped out, momentarily dazed.

"Ah! Intruders!" He moved into a defensive stance. "Don't worry, Allura. I'll take care of them!"

"No need, Coran. They're allies." She looked over at Keith. "But, how did you come here?"

"The Blue and Yellow Lions brought us here."

"What?" Allura frowned. "But, where are their paladins?"

"These are their paladins." Keith sighed. "I think we have a few things to talk about."


	6. Wish-Cursed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out being an alien not-genie isn't all that great.

"So, you're saying this is a curse?" Lance asked. "The whole genie thing?"

"Genie?" Allura asked.

"It's an Earth term," Keith explained. "And yes. We're called wish-cursed."

"It's a punishment for treason among the Galra," Coran added, tapping at the screen to check the Castle’s status.

"Wait, so you're Galra?" Hunk asked. "Is that why you didn't want to tell us anything?"

"I haven't talked about my history for hundreds of years," Keith answered, carefully avoiding Lance and Hunk’s eyes as he spoke. "If you hadn't wished for an adventure, I'd probably be back in my lamp now."

"How is Zarkon still alive?" Allura asked. "You said it's been thousands of years."

"I don't know.” Keith shook his head. “Like I said, my information's dated. I've been on Earth for the past few decades at least."

"You said the Galra weren't after you." Lance frowned. "But, you can grant wishes. Why wouldn't Zarkon just wish for Voltron?"

"It doesn't work like that," Allura answered. "Once someone becomes wish-cursed, everyone forgets about them, even the one who cursed them. It's part of the punishment. The loss of identity."

“Traitors shouldn’t be a part of history,” Keith murmured, as though the words had been spoken to him countless times.

Lance stared at Keith. "But what about people who get their wishes granted?"

"As soon as the wishes are granted, they forget," Keith said, his voice unnaturally even and calm.

"So...once I make three wishes, I'll forget you?" Lance asked, voice soft.

"Unfortunately," Coran answered.

Hunk frowned and turned to Keith. "You didn't tell us that."

Keith shrugged. "Not like it changes things."

"Is there a way to fix it? What if I wished to break the curse?" Lance asked.

"We...never found a way to break it." Allura picked up the lamp. "But perhaps."

"Or what if I just wished you were never cursed?"

"It doesn't work like that." Keith finally looked back at them. "My power's limited. You can't make huge changes like that. Just like you can't wish for Zarkon to be defeated or for Altea to come back."

"Then, how come you could take us to the lions?"

Keith sighed. "I don't make the rules. I just know what  _ hasn't _ worked."

Hunk asked, "Has anyone tried wishing for the curse to be broken?"

"It's one thing we tried when Zarkon started using it." Coran shook his head. "It didn't work."

Keith frowned. "Look, we need to focus on getting Voltron. Beating Zarkon is more important."

Allura nodded and stood. "You're right." Coran moved aside so she could access the controls. "I know where the Green and Black Lions are, but..." She examined the screen for a moment. "I can't find the Red Lion."

"Well, there's two of us, so we can at least get the lions and bring them back." Hunk stood. "No problem."

"They're useless without their paladins," Keith said. He looked over at Allura. "Do you know where their paladins are?"

She frowned. "No. And we can't reach the Black Lion without all of the others."

"Is that us?" Lance pointed at the castle on the map. "It looks like the Black Lion's right there."

"Very good, Lance." Allura tapped a few controls, and the map zoomed in. "The Black Lion is here at the castle behind a barrier that won't open up until all of the other lions are present."

"So, then, how do we find the paladins?" Hunk asked, hoping for the next best option.

"Well, traditionally, the paladins are all connected somehow." Coran stood and shifted the focus of the map. "Perhaps the other paladins are from Earth as well."

"It's a start." Allura sighed.

"Not much of one. Earth is pretty big," Hunk commented.

"Would our lions know?" Lance asked.

"What do you mean?" Allura looked over at him.

"Well, Blue took us to Hunk's lion, and then Hunk's lion brought us here. Maybe...they know where the paladins are." Lance shrugged. "It couldn't hurt."

"Considering the state of your lion, it certainly could." Allura frowned. "But perhaps if you were to take the Yellow Lion..."

Coran nodded. "And we can spruce up the Blue Lion and work on tracking down the Red Lion while you’re gone."

Hunk smiled. "It's worth a try."

"Keith can accompany you,” Allura added.

Lance jumped to his feet. "Great! Let's go!"

"Wait." Coran stood and stretched. "Your lions are in their bays, so you won't find them where you left them. Come with me." He led the trio to a set of multicolored pods. "This will take you to your lion. Be careful. The Galra are still looking for you. Call us if you need backup."

Hunk nodded and stepped into the bay, followed by Lance. Keith floated beside them, staring at their surroundings in the moments before the pod shut and whisked them away.

“You recognized it when we got here.” Lance looked over at Keith. “Did you learn about this place?”

Keith straightened and turned to face him. “We read about it.”

“It’s different up close, isn’t it?” Lance grinned.

“Yeah, this place is amazing.” Hunk touched the glass siding of the pod. “Can you imagine? This has been around for thousands of years.”

Keith nodded. “It’s incredible.” Lance’s grin softened as he watched Keith look around. He looked so much younger like this, in awe and seeing the castle he’d studied years ago finally come to life before his eyes. Lance had to wonder just how old Keith was when he’d been cursed in the first place, and the thought made his chest constrict. He silently promised Keith and himself that he’d find a way to break the curse and give Keith a chance to live a life again and to be remembered.

The pod dropped them and sent them through a series of transports that eventually deposited them at the foot of the yellow lion.

Hunk patted his lion's leg with a small smile. "Hey."

The lion hummed to life, bending down to allow them inside. Lance grinned and stepped inside. “Man, your lion’s almost as friendly as you are.”

Hunk chuckled and followed him in. He could have sworn he even saw Keith smiling, which Hunk didn’t dare comment on. He was just as thrilled to see Keith loosen up a bit as Lance was.

Once they were settled, Hunk managed to open the bay doors and fly out into space. Allura's face popped up in the corner. "Hunk, Coran says the damage to the Blue Lion will take some time to repair. If you see any trouble, you must return. We can't risk having both lions out of commission."

Hunk nodded. "Okay. I'll be careful."

"Thank you. We'll be able to track your location, so we can open up a wormhole to bring you back here quickly."

"Thanks, Allura."

"Sorry about my lion!" Lance called from behind Hunk.

Allura sighed and disconnected. Lance winced. While he knew he’d earned a bit of a scolding, her disappointment was tough to bear. Hunk reached back to pat his arm, and Lance sent him a small, appreciative smile.

The group was silent for a moment while Hunk stared down at the controls and Lance watched expectantly. He closed his eyes and focused, hoping his lion would communicate somehow if he just listened closely enough. Instead, he was met with total silence.

Hunk frowned and glanced over at Lance. "Maybe this was a bad idea."

Keith moved closer to the controls. "Try talking to it. That's how you got it to let you in."

"Right." Hunk looked up at his lion. "Okay, buddy. We need your help finding the other paladins. Do you think you can help with that?" He gently patted the control panel. "You already helped protect Lance and took us to Allura. Just one more favor and we can go save the universe again."

The engines hummed to life, and Hunk grinned.

"You're definitely the best lion." The Yellow Lion hummed in agreement even as Lance protested. Lance fell silent when he saw the wormhole opening in front of him.

"Whoa, that worked!" Lance murmured. "Hunk, you genius."

"Technically, it was Keith," Hunk commented as he guided his lion into the wormhole.

"Well, good to know he's smart  _ and _ hot, then."

Keith rolled his eyes.

They reappeared in the backyard of a house that appeared to be the only one for miles. The Yellow Lion landed gently in a soft patch of grass. Hunk raised a brow, looking around. "Are we back on Earth?" While the landscape resembled Earth, the house was the only sign of civilization among a few shrubs and a broad expanse of green. A few trees dotted the outskirts of their vision, but for the most part, all Lance could see was grass.

Lance shrugged. "They did say the paladins might be on Earth."

The Yellow Lion bent down to allow them to drop to the ground, Lance carrying Keith's lantern as they looked around.

"Whose house is this?" Lance asked, peering at the sides to see if he could find a name or even a number.

Hunk frowned. "I don't know." He glanced up at his lion. "Is it safe to just leave it here?"

"I don't-"

They froze when the backdoor opened, and a short brown-haired figure stepped outside, followed by a taller figure with dark hair. The taller one appeared to have some difficulty walking, but he managed without too much help from his companion.

They stopped and stared down at Lance, Hunk, and Keith, frozen in the middle of their backyard.

"Get inside!" The shorter person shouted, immediately moving in front of the taller man.

Lance's eyes widened when he suddenly realized who he was staring down. "Whoa... Is that Shiro?"


	7. The Green Lion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance, Hunk, and Keith find two more paladins on Earth.

Sure enough, Lance found himself only feet away from the man he’d idolized for years now. Sure, he looked decades older, and he even sported a shock of white in the front of his hair and a scar over the bridge of his nose, but he had to be the same person.

The younger man's eyes narrowed. "Who are you? How do you know Shiro?"

Shiro took a step back, paling at the sight of Keith. "Pidge..."

"Wait, he's  _ Shiro _ Shiro?" Hunk asked, eyes wide. “Like, the Shiro that went on the Kerberos mission?”

"How do you know about that?" Pidge asked, stepping forward and pressing Shiro back.

"Because I've wanted to be a pilot for ages, and Shiro's the best one out there.” Lance paused. “Or...was. I mean, I guess technically still is. I thought he was dead!"

Shiro grabbed Pidge and tugged him back. "Pidge, get inside,” he ordered, voice rising in panic.

"Whoa, whoa. Hold on." Hunk raised his hands, hoping to defuse the situation. "We're on your side. We're looking for paladins of Voltron."

"There's no way I'm letting you find Voltron," Shiro snapped, his arm glowing as he moved Pidge behind him.

Keith stared at his metal prosthetic. "Is that..." He looked up at Shiro, immediately recognizing the work of the druids. "You were in the arena?"

Shiro paused, breathing rapid and arm still glowing faintly. "What?"

"That's Galra tech." Keith moved closer. "Did they capture you?"

Pidge glanced between Keith and Shiro. "Do you know each other?"

"He's Galra." Shiro took another step back as his arm flared to life again.

Pidge immediately scowled and tried to move between them. "How did you find him?"

Keith shook his head. "I'm not one of Zarkon's followers. Trust me."

Lance walked over to Keith and stuck a hand through his chest. "Look, he's harmless."

Pidge jumped. "Is he a ghost?!"

"No." Keith grimaced. "And didn't anyone teach you it's rude to stick your arm through people?"

"Sorry." Lance stepped back, looking anything but. "It's a long story, but Keith's on our side, and I'm guessing you're on our side, since you probably want to take down Zarkon."

Pidge frowned, gripping Shiro’s arm. "How do we know we can trust you?"

Hunk finally spoke up. "Are you related to Matt Holt?"

Pidge turned to look at him. "I- What?"

"You look a lot like him." Hunk looked him over. "But, I don't think he had a brother."

Pidge sighed, slowly stepping out from behind Shiro. "He... I'm his sister."

"Katie?" Hunk asked.

She nodded. “I go by Pidge.”

"Wait, so is Matt here, too?” Hunk perked up at the prospect of his friend being a fellow paladin. “I haven't seen him since he helped me with that extra credit project about rewiring drone fighters."

"You're Hunk?" Pidge finally relaxed. "Matt...he talked about you."

Lance chimed in, eager for a chance to speak to his hero. “He was on the mission with you, right, Shiro?”

Shiro nodded, brows furrowed. “Yes, but…”

Pidge looked back at Shiro, answering for him, "Matt's not here. We don't know where he is."

"Was he captured, too?" Hunk asked, though he knew enough about the Kerberos mission to guess the answer.

"Yeah," Shiro answered, his arm finally powering down. "He and his father."

Lance frowned. "Wait, so how are you here?"

Shiro shook his head. "My memory is pretty...fuzzy. I don't know how I escaped. I just remember landing and waking up, surrounded by scientists, and I wanted to tell them about Voltron, but they knocked me out. Next thing I knew, I woke up here."

Pidge chimed in, some of her energy returning now that she was sure she’d found allies. "I saw them take him, but I couldn't do anything alone, so I hijacked a transport and dragged him out of the med bay after I set up a distraction."

"She still won't tell me what she did," Shiro commented, eyeing her.

"Plausible deniability," she answered with a wave of the hand. "It's for your own good."

"It's not really reassuring, though,” Shiro muttered.

Pidge shrugged. "I wanted to see if he could help me find my family."

Lance's expression softened. "Wow. I wish we knew where they were."

"Done,” Keith said.

Lance turned on Keith with wide eyes. "Wait, what?"

Pidge frowned. "Why do I suddenly have a map in my head?"

"Keith grants wishes." Lance answered. "But, I didn't mean-"

"Wait, so he's a Galra genie?" Shiro asked.

"He's not a genie," Hunk and Lance answered in unison. Keith almost smiled in response.

“But, that's a map to my brother and my dad?" Pidge asked.

"Yeah," Keith answered.

"I know where they are now," Pidge whispered, eyes wide.

Lance grinned, glad that at least his unintended wish might help her in the end. "We could take you there if you want."

Pidge brightened. "Let's go right now!"

Hunk held up his hands. "Whoa, hold on. We're really outnumbered. We should at least try and find another lion before we go in there."

Keith nodded. "Hunk's right. You won't help much if you're captured, too."

"Okay, so we need to find another lion?" Pidge asked. “What’s a lion?”

Hunk and Lance both pointed to the Yellow Lion.

“Whoa…” She ran over to examine it. “How does this work?”

"You know what?" Lance chuckled and slung an arm over her shoulders. "Allura explains it so much better. Let's go ask her."

"So the Yellow Lion led you to these two?" Allura asked, looking them over through the screen. The Yellow Lion's control room was considerably more crowded now with Shiro and Pidge joining them, but there was enough space for all of them to stand comfortably and still see Allura on the screen. Keith even had room to hover beside them.

"Yes." Lance nodded. "So, which one of them’s the paladin?"

"You're in luck." Allura smiled. "They both are. The only one left now is the red paladin."

"Wait, really?" Pidge raised a brow. "So, which one am I?"

"As you already know, Lance is the paladin for the Blue Lion, and Hunk is the paladin for the Yellow Lion. Pidge, I'm sure you're the paladin to the Green Lion, and Shiro, you seem to be the Black Lion's paladin."

"So, the paladins pilot the lions and, when they're all together, they form Voltron." Shiro relayed the information back to her. "But, first, we need all the lions to form Voltron, and we need the other lions to get to the black lion."

"That's right.”

“But, first, we need to save my family,” Pidge jumped in, frowning slightly. “I need to know they're safe.”

Allura grimaced. “Finding the lions will allow us to save them. I understand that you want them safe, but going in unprepared is reckless.” She glanced over at a map beside her. “Perhaps, if we're lucky, one of them will prove to be the red paladin.”

“But, how do we save them without Voltron?” Lance asked.

“Well, if your information is accurate, you won't need Voltron to free Pidge's family. Two lions should be enough.” Allura sent Lance a sharp look. “Particularly, if you're careful."

“Great, then we can take Lance's lion, too.” Pidge smiled.

“Actually…” Lance began, fidgeting in place.

Keith finished for him. “Lance damaged it.”

“Didn't you just find it?” Pidge asked, her tone sharp.

“Look, I was under fire!” Lance protested, gesturing wildly, one hand going through Keith. “Sorry, Keith.”

Keith simply ignored him.

"Do you know where the Green Lion is, Allura?" Shiro cut in.

"Yes. Give me a moment, and I can send you straight there,” Allura answered, tapping the screen.

Seconds later, another shimmering wormhole appeared in front of them, and Pidge oohed in appreciation of the sight.

"Go quickly. I can't sustain it for too long," Allura warned.

Hunk nodded, and the Yellow Lion dove inside. 

 

They appeared above a lush, green planet covered in what looked like an enormous jungle. A few gaps between the trees gave them small glimpses of the earth below. The Yellow Lion slowly guided itself to the surface and landed beside a river.

“So, the Green Lion’s around here somewhere?” Pidge asked, looking around.

“Yeah, looks like it,” Lance answered, carrying Keith's lamp as they stepped down. “I mean, the whole planet’s green.”

“Where is it?”

Hunk shrugged. “You sort of...feel it when you're getting close.”

“I feel it?” She asked, a brow arched. 

“It's kind of hard to explain.”

She sighed. “Can't you just wish for us to know where it is?”

Lance tensed, holding the lamp protectively. “No. We only have one wish left.”

“Okay, so use the last one, and then I'll wish for something for you.”

“It doesn't work like that.” Keith spoke, looking out into the forest.

“Well, why not?”

“Because once the three wishes are up, we forget him.” Lance walked past her, struggling to hide his irritation with the whole situation. “Hey, why's there a boat over here?”

“Wait, forget him? We can't-” She yelped and ducked behind Shiro when she saw the sloth-like creature beside her. “What's that?”

“Aww,” Lance grinned and walked over to it. “He looks friendly.”

“I think he wants you to go with him.” Shiro said, calm as ever while Pidge climbed up his side.

She dropped to the ground and stepped out from behind him to look the creature over. “Okay...” She was reluctant to follow it, but after being whisked off into space by a robotic lion, she was open to the possibility that maybe she should just go with what the universe had in store for today.

The creature led her to the boat docked at the shore, and she glanced over at the rest of the group. “There's enough room for one more.”

“Shiro can go,” Hunk grinned. “We'll keep an eye on my lion.”

“Okay.” Shiro shrugged and slipped into the boat, and they set off. The creature rowed for them, sending them down the river at a painfully slow pace.

“So, she gets an escort. Go figure. We had to fall into an underground cavern, and she gets a jungle tour guide.” Lance grumbled as he sat down, leaning on one of the Yellow Lion's legs.

“Hey, I had to drill my way to my lion.” Hunk settled down beside him. “At least you landed beside yours.”

Keith frowned. “We still need to find the Red Lion and the red paladin after this.”

“We?” Lance smirked up at Keith, a teasing lilt to his voice. “Finally admitting you're part of the team, huh?”

“ _ You  _ still need to find them,” Keith clarified, looking away.

Hunk smiled. “Hey, Keith, it’s okay. You’re part of the team, too.”

“For now,” Keith answered, turning to watch out for a sign that Pidge had returned with her lion.

“Don’t talk like that. We’re keeping you around.” Lance polished one side of the lamp as he spoke. “I still have one more wish, you know.” One he’d promised himself he wouldn’t use unless it was to free Keith.

Keith didn’t answer, leaving the group in a momentary, uncomfortable silence.

“Do you think Blue’s gonna be mad at me?” Lance asked finally, staring up at the treetops as he casually leaned back.

“For what?” Hunk asked.

“Well, you know...all the damage and stuff.”

“You were doing your job as a paladin, protecting us so we could find the Yellow Lion,” Keith answered, his voice soft. “Your lion won’t be angry.”

“You think?” Lance asked, a little unsure after the way Allura held it against him.

A burst of green light filled the sky downstream from where Pidge and Shiro had set off.

Keith grinned, thrilled to see the sign that they’d found one more lion. “I know it.”

The Green Lion landed beside them seconds later, and Pidge dropped down to the ground in front of them.

“You found it!” Hunk beamed up at her lion. “That’s great!”

“Thanks,” Pidge glanced over at Keith and Lance. “We can go get my dad and brother now, right?”

“We should check in with Princess Allura first,” Keith answered.

Pidge frowned. “I thought we just needed the lions.”

“Yeah, but we should at least let her know we found yours.” Lance said, sensing the growing tension between them. “Besides, maybe Blue’s fixed by now. Three lions is better than two.”

“You heard Coran,” Hunk chided gently as his lion bent down to pick them up. “It's gonna be a little while.”

“Yeah, I know,” Lance grumbled as he followed Hunk into the Yellow Lion. “Just...maybe it went faster than he thought.”

Allura’s face popped up in the corner of the screen. “You've found the Green Lion already?”

“Yeah. Any update on Blue?” Lance asked.

She frowned. “Not since you damaged her.”

Keith bit back a smirk while Lance shrank under her glare.

Hunk sighed. “So, are we clear to go get Pidge's family?”

“You should come back to the castle first. We've located something that may be useful to you.”

“Is it the Red Lion?” Keith asked.

“Well…” Allura answered reluctantly. “Not quite.”

“We'll head your way,” Hunk said. “I'll let Pidge kn-”

Pidge's face appeared on the side of his screen, catching the tail end of the conversation. “Let me know what?”

“Ah, Pidge, excellent timing.” Allura smiled. “Follow Hunk through the wormhole, please. There's something back at the castle that might interest you.”

“Then we're going to get my family, right?” Pidge asked with a small frown.

“Yes,” Allura assured her. “This won't take very long and then you can be on your way.”


	8. Saving the Holts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Featuring the one and only Pidge "zapped Lance with her bayard because he mocked her" Gunderson.

Pidge stared up at the Castle the moment they emerged from the wormhole. “Holy crow…” she whispered, taking in the sight. While she’d known intellectually that aliens existed, seeing it firsthand was an entirely different experience.

The Green and Yellow Lions went into their bays without further instruction from their paladins, which was best for Pidge, since her attention was fully captured by the Castle and the process of bringing the lions inside.

The group met back up in the room where Lance, Hunk, and Keith found Allura just hours ago. Allura had already pulled up a map, and Lance immediately noticed the red symbol that had been missing before. “Hey! You did find the Red Lion!”

“Yes,” Allura said slowly, eyeing the map with a frown. “Unfortunately, it appears to be in a Galra ship. One that’s approaching us rather quickly.”

“How soon until it gets here?” Shiro asked, glancing over at the Red Lion’s position on the map.

“Enough time for us to repair the Blue Lion and fortify our defenses.” She tapped the map to bring up an enhanced view of the Red Lion’s location. “And hopefully enough time for you to retrieve Pidge’s family.”

“Hopefully?” Pidge asked, brows furrowed.

“We will find them. I assure you.” Allura sighed, mentally calculating the amount of time they had left. “But, we may need you here.”

“Is that why you called us back here?” Lance asked, folding his arms over his chest. “I thought you said you had something useful.”

“No, it isn’t why.” Allura straightened. “Come with me.” She led them to another room in the Castle, Shiro occasionally giving Pidge a nudge forward when she stopped to stare at their surroundings. “I've located the room that houses the paladin armor and weapons.”

Hunk frowned up at the armor, momentarily wondering just how it was supposed to fit all of them when it looked so compact. Thankfully, once he began to put it on, he found the size wasn’t an issue at all. Shiro looked the most relieved to be dressed in something other than the clothes he’d borrowed from the Holts. Lance managed to distract Keith from staring quietly at the red paladin’s armor by flexing in the black undersuit. Lance was sure he’d never seen anything more amazing than Keith laughing at him. Pidge was relieved to find hers fit just as well as everyone else’s, and she had already begun to wander the room while everyone else finished suiting up. 

Allura led them to the middle of the room. “These are your bayards. They’re the traditional weapons used by the paladins of Voltron, and they take a different form for each user. The black bayard was lost, unfortunately.” Allura indicated the empty space between the others. “But at least you have your armor to protect you, Shiro.”

“That's okay. We'll keep him safe, princess.” Lance grinned and winked at her, scooping up his bayard in the process. “Let's see what mine looks like.” The bayard transformed into a long-barreled gun, and Lance held it up to examine it. “Wow!”

“What's mine?” Hunk asked, picking up the yellow bayard. His eyes widened when it turned into a massive shoulder gun. “Whoa!”

“Oh, cool! Are they all guns?” Lance asked, looking over Hunk's weapon.

“Let's see.” Pidge picked up her bayard and smiled when it became a compact triangle. “Looks like you guys just like guns.”

Lance chuckled. “Awww. You got a cute bayard.”

She scowled and tapped it against his arm. Lance yelped when a sharp electric current flooded his body. “Yeah.” She smirked up at him. “It's adorable.”

He rubbed his arm and glared at her while Keith chuckled from beside him.

“We need to be quick if we’re going to retrieve your family, Pidge. I'll go ahead and open a path.” Allura led them back to the control room. “Where are they?”

Keith named a galaxy the others had never heard of, but one Allura clearly knew. With a few taps to the screen, she pulled up a map. “It's an old work camp.” Keith explained, pointing to it on the map. “You're lucky they're both in the same place.”

“I'm not sure lucky is the word I'd use,” Pidge grumbled, leaning in to look at the screen.

“Do you know precisely where they are?” Allura asked, zooming in on the planet.

Keith pointed to the location that still lingered in his mind from Lance’s wish. “Right here.”

“I'll open a wormhole that leads directly to it. Free as many people as you can, but I'd suggest locating Pidge's family first. If we need you back here, we'll call you over the communications link in your helmets.” Allura looked over at the group. “Be careful.”

Lance picked up Keith's lamp. “We'll be back before you know it.”

“Wait.” Allura placed a hand on Lance’s arm. “Perhaps it would be better to leave Keith here,” she suggested, glancing over at Keith and back to Lance. “That way you don't have to keep track of him.”

“No way,” Lance frowned. “We're going as a team.”

“Allura has a point,” Keith said. “I won't be able to help you.”

“You're part of the team.” Lance hooked the lamp onto his armor. “That's final.”

“Lance-” Keith began to protest, but Lance was already walking towards the transport to the Yellow Lion.

Hunk followed, darting into the pod that would take them to his lion.

“When are you getting it?” Lance scowled at Keith. “We started this together. You're part of this team.”

“Yeah, and when you use your last wish, you'll forget about me,” Keith snapped. “I'm not human. I'm not sticking around.”

“I'm not using my last wish,” Lance answered, jaw set in a stubborn frown. “You're stuck with me until I die.”

“Fine.” Keith shrugged and looked away. “As long as Zarkon doesn't get Voltron, I don't care what else happens.”

Hunk fidgeted in the uncomfortable silence that followed, eyeing the other two with concern. Thankfully, they dropped into the transport to his lion seconds later, and soon enough, they were in the Yellow Lion.

“Ready to go?” Pidge's voice sounded over Lance and Hunk's helmets the moment Hunk sat in the pilot’s seat.

“Absolutely!” Hunk answered, gripping the controls and taking a steadying breath. Despite his lion’s help, flying was still a very new and terrifying skill for him in some ways. He was just lucky he managed to fly without any motion sickness interfering.

“Then, let's do this.” Pidge answered.

 

They flew through the wormhole together and emerged over a barren planet populated by stark grey barracks, all painted with purple symbols. Keith glared at the writing as they flew by. Lance wanted to ask what they said, but one look at Keith told him it might be better for him not to.

“They're over here,” Pidge said as she directed her lion towards a nearby building. Hunk followed her and, thankfully Lance was already preparing his bayard to fight when the first Galra sentry spotted them. Pidge quickly landed her lion on the robotic creature, crushing it before it could alert the others. Lance sent her a thumbs up he suspected she wouldn’t be able to see.

She and Shiro dropped to the ground, and Hunk, Lance, and Keith soon followed. Lance quickly shot down another sentry nearby while Pidge and Shiro ran into the building housing her family. Hunk covered them with a few short bursts of fire, and Lance darted inside once he was reasonably sure there weren't any guards nearby. Keith followed, watching for any sign of anyone the others might have missed. He couldn't fight, but he could at least serve as another pair of eyes.

“Matt! Dad!” Pidge ran to them while Shiro gathered some of the other prisoners. Lance allowed himself a moment to watch the small group reunite, happy to see her family safe and sound. He looked down, wondering if his mother had noticed he was gone yet. He wasn’t even sure how long they’d been gone, and it pained him to think that he hadn’t had the chance to say goodbye or even ask when he’d be able to go back home.

Well, he reasoned, he’d gotten himself into this, so now he had to do the job he’d signed up for. Lance ran over to a small group huddled in a corner. “Hey, don’t worry. We’re here to help you. We’re paladins of Voltron. We’ll get you out of here.

They stared up at Keith, eyes wide with panic, and Lance suddenly understood why Allura and Keith had both suggested Keith stay behind. To these prisoners, he looked exactly like the enemy, which wasn’t exactly the best recipe for encouraging them to trust them. Lance allowed his weapon to fade back into a bayard, hoping the gesture would show he wasn’t there to hurt them.

“It's okay. He's on our side. Trust me,” Lance assured them, keeping his voice soft and soothing. “He's the one who helped us find all of you in the first place.”

“He's Galra,” one murmured, shrinking away

“He’s not-”

Keith cut him off, instead turning to Shiro and Pidge. “We need to find a ship that can transport the others. We can't fit this many in your lions.” Keith moved away, looking around for any kind of transport in the room. He couldn't make it very far from his lamp, stopping only a few feet away from Lance. “Does anyone know where the ships are?”

Matt raised a hand, stepping away from the small family huddle to speak up. “We had to work on one the other day. It's probably still in the hangar.”

Shiro smiled over at him. “Great.” Sam and Matt both turned to look at him. Clearly, they’d missed him earlier in their haste to reach Pidge. “Pidge, can you go to the transport and bring it back here? We need to get as many people on board as we can. Take Lance with you.”

She nodded. “Dad, stay here with Shiro. Matt and I will be right back.”

Her father shook his head. “I'm coming with you. I know where it is, too.”

Matt placed a hand on his shoulder. “No, that's why you need to stay here. I'll take care of Katie.” He looked over at her and chuckled. “Sorry. I mean, Pidge.”

She scoffed, nudging his side. “You mean I'll take care of you.”

Matt smiled, relaxing slightly at the familiar teasing. “Sure, whatever you need to tell yourself, sis.”

She rolled her eyes and rubbed her cheeks to remove any stray tears. “Okay. Let's go.”

Matt’s eyes fell to Shiro’s arm, and he inhaled sharply. “Shiro-”

“We can talk later,” Shiro said, avoiding his eyes. “Be careful.”

“Okay.” He squeezed Shiro’s shoulder as he passed. “I’m glad to see you.”

“Me, too,” Shiro answered with a small smile. “Both of you.”

Sam nodded and walked over to stand by Shiro. Pidge went first, looking around for any sign of guards. Thankfully, the coast was clear, and Matt followed her out. Lance glanced back to catch a quick glimpse of Sam embracing Shiro before he followed Pidge and Matt out of the structure. His bayard shifted back into a gun the instant he set foot outside. Keith kept a sharp eye out from beside him, clearly on edge with the threat of being discovered. So far, they hadn't seen any sign of any actual Galra, which Lance thought was encouraging. It was easier to destroy a robot than a living, breathing being, after all.

Matt spoke under his breath as he directed them. “The guards are mostly mechanical here. Last place, it was crawling with Galra soldiers.”

“But, you're okay, though,” Pidge asked, looking him over as she walked beside him.

“Yeah. Thanks to Shiro.” Matt peered around a corner. “He injured my leg, and they had to send me off to get treated. I played up a limp afterwards, so they sent me to work with Dad.”

“Shiro what?” Pidge asked, barely restraining from an actual yell.

“Ssh.” Matt's voice lowered to a whisper. “He did it so I wouldn't be sent out to fight in the Arena. It saved my life.”

Her eyes widened. “He didn’t tell me that.”

Lance spotted and shot down another two guards. “Not to interrupt a touching moment, but are we close?”

“Yeah, it's right over there.” Matt pointed to one of the larger buildings. “Work stations are pretty close together here.”

Pidge nodded and looked around for any other sign of life, mechanical or otherwise. They'd been lucky, but with two enormous robotic lions in the middle of the camp, she didn't expect to be taking the Galra by surprise for very much longer. She darted inside, beckoning for the others to follow once she’d checked for guards inside.

Lance waited until Matt was inside before following.

“Lance behind you!” Keith shouted as Lance darted between buildings. He almost reached out to push Lance inside, but decades of instinct stilled his hand before he could try.

Lance jumped inside and slammed the hangar door shut behind him, a bolt of energy striking the door seconds after he closed it. “I think they know we're here!”

“You think?” Keith shot back, glancing through the door to assess the situation. “There’s at least a dozen out there.”

Pidge leapt into the transport as Matt slid into the driver's seat. “What’s going on out there, Lance?”

Lance inched the door open and shot down one of the guards firing at them. “Well, we’re sort of outnumbered.”

“By how much?”

“By a lot,” Keith snapped.

Shiro's voice sounded over their helmets. “I'm hearing fire. Is everyone okay?”

Lance frowned. “They kind of have us pinned. Any chance for some backup?”

“We'll be there as soon as-”

“Shiro, they found us!” Hunk shouted over the communications link.

Shiro muttered what Lance suspected was a curse before their link filled with the sound of return fire and Shiro’s shouts for the others to hide. Matt reached over to squeeze Pidge’s hand, both of them sharing a worried glance.

“He’s gonna be okay! Shiro and Hunk are with him,” Lance assured them over the sounds of shooting outside and over their communications link. Part of him was worried right along with them, but he also knew that at least one of them besides Keith had to stay calm. “Is there another way out of here?”

Keith pointed up. “There's one way.”

“We can't go through the roof!” Pidge yelled. “The transport’s not strong enough to break through. We'll just crash into it.”

Lance managed to take out two more guards, but there were too many of them for that to mean much of anything, and the number was growing by the minute. “Well, we need to figure something out.” The door wouldn’t hold for much longer at the rate it was being attacked.

“Lance shoot a hole in the roof,” Keith instructed. “Make sure it’s big enough for the transport to fit.”

“Good idea.” Lance aimed up at the ceiling, shooting a wide circle into the heavy material. After a round or two of continuous fire, he ran towards the transport and jumped onto it just as the material from the ceiling dropped beside them. “Go!”

Matt flew up, a bit shaky and unbalanced, but he managed to get them off the ground.

“Do you know how to fly this?” Keith asked, secretly wondering if humans made a habit of flying ships without any experience or training. 

Matt scraped the sides of the transport as he flew through the hole in the roof. “Well, sort of. I haven’t flown anything in a year, and this is a little different than the Garrison ships.”

Keith grimaced as the transport tilted a bit too far when Matt turned. “That’s comforting.”

Lance shot a few more guards as they flew. “We need to get to the lions. Hunk and Shiro are in trouble.”

“I know. I heard it, too.” Pidge frowned, still concerned for the fate of the prisoners they’d left.

Hunk's voice came over the communications link, a bit rough and low. “It's okay. We're fine now. Um… Shiro just took out all of them solo.”

“How many were there?” Lance asked as he shot down another guard.

“A lot,” Hunk answered softly, sounding a bit shaken. Lance’s eyes widened, and he managed a glance back at Pidge before he returned to picking off guards on the ground. Sure, Hunk had a reputation for being an anxious guy, but he sounded almost scared, which made Lance wonder just how many guards Shiro had taken out and exactly  _ how _ he’d taken them out.

“We're almost back to you guys,” Pidge said, watching Matt steer away from a few guards aiming at them. “Did you find anyone else?”

“Sam directed us to the other prisoners. There's one group we haven't reached yet.” Shiro spoke up, voice a little sharper than before. “Lance, you and Hunk can go while I get this group to safety.”

“We're at the lions now.” Pidge directed Matt to the Yellow Lion, more visible over the barracks than hers. “Bring them here, and we'll get everyone on board.”

Lance dropped to the ground the instant the transport landed, Keith following close behind. “Hunk, where are you, buddy?” He knew they needed to hurry now that the guards had definitely found them.

“I'm in my lion,” Hunk answered, still sounding a little unsteady. “Come on up.”

“Where's the last group?” Lance asked, watching as Pidge ushered the prisoners on the ground into the transport. She hugged her father when he came out of the building. Lance couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he could imagine. Matt joined in seconds later, and despite the fact that it brought him closer to possibly losing Keith, he couldn’t bring himself to regret wishing for their location now that he was watching them.

“They’re not far. It’s a pretty small group, so we should be able to carry them in my lion. Pidge and Shiro are taking off once he gets back.” The Yellow Lion leaned down, opening its mouth to allow Lance and Keith inside.

“Great. Any word from Allura?” Lance asked as he made his way inside, Keith trailing behind.

“We could use you back soon,” Allura said, frowning up at them from the corner of the Yellow Lion's screen.

“Aw, miss me already?” Lance teased.

Allura rolled her eyes. “The Galra ship is set to arrive momentarily. Our defenses are mostly back online, but I'm concerned we won't last long without the lions to fight alongside us.”

“Don't worry. We'll be there soon,” Hunk assured her.

Hunk’s screen went blank, and Lance tugged off his helmet. “So, what happened with Shiro?”

Hunk took a deep breath. “His arm started glowing, and he just started slicing through them. It was intense, man.” He flew off. “There had to be, like, fifty of them. He just took them all out in seconds.”

Lance let out a low whistle. “Man, glad he’s on our side.”

Hunk chuckled and relaxed just a little. “Yeah. That’s true.”

They flew off to a building close by, and Lance eyed it carefully. “Looks safe enough. Guess they haven’t sent anyone there yet.” He looked over at Hunk. “Stay here, and we'll call you if we need you.”

Keith frowned. “Why don't you leave me here, Lance? You saw the way those prisoners looked at me.”

Lance ignored him and dropped to the ground, dragging Keith down with him. “See you in a sec, buddy,” he said to Hunk.

“Lance, you know, Keith has a point-” Hunk began before Lance shut off the link in his helmet.

“Why are you being so stubborn about this?” Keith asked, just shy of actually shouting.

“Maybe I like having you around, okay?” Lance snapped. “Besides, you've been helpful.”

“You can't expect me to be around forever.”

“That's another thing,” Lance snapped as he peered around the corner, his pulse racing with adrenaline and irritation. “You act like you're not sticking around. I say you are. I don't care what you think.”

“You only have one wish left. Then, you forget me.” Keith explained, voice soft to avoid drawing attention. “That's what happens, and you have to accept that.”

“Well, that's just stupid.” Lance scowled. “And if you think I'm not stubborn enough to keep you around, then so are you.”

“Lance…”

Lance stepped into the building housing the last of the prisoners and spotted a small group huddled together. He glanced around the room for any guards. “Looks clear.” Keith nodded from beside him, though his jaw was set in anger. Lance knew they’d have to talk more about it later, but he also knew it didn’t matter what Keith said. He had no intention of forgetting Keith. Lance approached the group slowly, allowing his gun to revert back to a bayard. “We’re here to get you out. Is anybody missing?”

“We heard shots,” one explained, trembling and staring at them.

“That was us fighting the guards. I'm a paladin of Voltron, and the Yellow Lion is right outside. We already rescued the others.” Lance explained. “So, can you tell me if everyone is here? Did the guards take anyone with them?”

“We’re all here,” another one finally said. “The guards left us here once the shooting began.”

“Great.” Lance gestured towards the door. “Then, let’s get you out of here.”

The five shared looks, eyeing Keith before cautiously walking towards Lance.

“I told you I shouldn't have come,” Keith mumbled, looking away.

Lance grimaced. “Look, the Yellow Lion's right outside. We’ll have you free in no time.” He checked again for guards. “Okay, the coast-”

A shot cut him off, and he slammed the door shut.

“Okay, not so clear.”

“Where's Hunk?” Keith scowled. “Did you check with him?”

Lance winced. “I forgot to turn the link back on.” He patched back in.

“-outside! Lance, did you hear me? Don't come out here!” Hunk shouted through the link.

“Sorry, I turned off the link.” Lance gripped his bayard as it turned back into a gun. “Let me know when it's safe to come out, okay?”

A loud thump sounded from outside. “Just a second,” Hunk grumbled. “And seriously, Lance, keep your comm link open.”

“Sorry!” Lance repeated. He hadn’t intended to keep the link off, and he knew that ignoring Hunk’s valid concerns about how the prisoners would react to Keith was petty. So, Lance was petty. Today had been, objectively, pretty stressful, so maybe the universe could excuse a little pettiness.

A few shots sounded outside, and Hunk spoke over the link, short and sharp, “Okay, hurry.”

Lance waved the group outside. After the shots from before, they were less hesitant, which saved Lance from having to urge them on again. He followed after them, picking his way through the mechanical guards strewn on the ground, a few clearly crushed by the Yellow Lion. Hunk was certainly efficient when he needed to be. He hadn’t taken out as many as Shiro, but he’d certainly destroyed an impressive number in a very short period of time.

The Yellow Lion scooped them all up, and Hunk immediately flew up before anyone else could spot them. “Everyone, hold on!”


	9. The Red Paladin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When the team finds themselves vastly outnumbered by Galra ships, Lance has a difficult choice to make.

They soared through the wormhole, cramped together behind the pilot's seat, Keith actually half inside Lance and one of the prisoners, and arrived to see a Galra fleet outside the castle. Lance stared, horrified by the sheer number of attackers just outside of the castle. Luckily, Allura and Coran had managed to pull up a barrier to protect the castle, but Lance had to wonder how long it would last.

Allura's face popped up on the screen again, looking a bit more tense than before. “You're just in time. Drop off your passengers quickly. Lance, Coran has finished repairing your lion.”

Lance put on a grin, despite the sick feeling in his stomach. “Perfect!” At least his lion was okay now. He wasn’t sure how much good they’d be able to do against what looked like hundreds of ships, but maybe they’d get lucky and one of Pidge’s family really would turn out to be the last paladin. Based on what he’d seen, Lance was beginning to suspect Voltron would be the only thing that could turn this fight around.

Hunk nodded and soared to the castle. “Thanks, Allura.” He directed his lion to its bay, and Lance led the small group out to safety, Keith following behind him and avoiding the looks the prisoners sent his way. Once everyone was out of his lion, Hunk took off to join Pidge in defending the castle. Lance watched him leave, his chest tight with worry. Hunk was like family, and the thought of losing him was more than Lance could stomach.

“Lance,” Keith said softly, bringing Lance back to the present.

“Yeah,” Lance nodded and turned to the group. “Let’s go.” Lance and Keith guided the group up to the main floor. “Allura,” Lance asked over the communications link, “We’re on the main floor. Where are the rest of the-”

Coran waved at him from down the hall. “Go on ahead! I'll take care of them.”

“Thanks!” Lance directed the small group of prisoners down the hall. “Any word on the red paladin?” Lance asked as he ran to the pod that would take him to his lion's bay.

Allura spoke up through the link, her voice strained. “No. Unfortunately, none of the prisoners are the red paladin.”

Lance skidded to a halt inside the pod and slumped back against the glass. “Okay. I’ll be there soon.”

“Hurry,” she answered. Lance switched off the link and tugged off his helmet to catch his breath. Without Voltron, he couldn’t imagine this fight ending well. This adventure certainly wasn’t playing out the way he’d hoped. Now he and his friends were in danger, not to mention what would happen if the Galra retrieved the rest of the lions.

Keith turned to him once the doors closed, his voice as calm as he could manage. “Lance, you saw how many Galra ships there were out there.”

“Yeah,” Lance frowned, already wary of Keith's tone. “We'll handle it.” He wasn’t sure how, but he had to believe they would. 

“There's too many. You need Voltron.”

“Well, we need the red paladin before we can do that.” Lance stared ahead, trying to keep it together. “And the Red Lion.”

“Use your last wish to bring the red paladin here.” Keith stepped in front of him. “Then, you can go get the Red Lion and-”

“No way,” Lance snapped, standing and glaring at Keith. “I told you that's not happening. We'll just-”

“The castle isn't safe, and if they get the lions, that means Zarkon will have Voltron.” Keith folded his arms over his chest, glaring right back. 

“We won't let that happen.”

“You don't get a choice,” Keith snapped. “There's too many of them. I told you that keeping Voltron away from Zarkon is my top priority.”

“Yeah, and I told you-”

“Lance!” Keith shouted. “This isn't about you!”

“Fine!” Lance threw up his hands, gesturing wildly as he yelled. “It's not about me. It's about our team. You can help us. I'm not wishing you away.” He knew he was grasping for the slightest excuse, but he also knew he wasn’t about to forget Keith. Not after he’d fought so hard to keep him around.

“The most helpful thing I can do right now is bring you the red paladin,” Keith answered, struggling to keep his voice even. He knew one of them had to be reasonable about this. “Lance, you have to let me go or everyone is going to-”

“I'm so tired of you trying to leave.” Lance turned away, folding his arms over his stomach. Part of him could understand it. Keith was used to this. He was used to the idea that he couldn’t be a permanent part of anything, and he had been trying to distance himself to make it easier on Lance when the time came. He was used to leaving, and Lance hated this curse for making him so accustomed to being erased. Lance desperately wanted to prove Keith wrong, despite the fact that Keith was being rational and level-headed. Of course sacrificing one member of their team couldn’t be more important than saving the entire universe. Of course he couldn’t keep the promise to somehow break the curse or at least keep Keith around. “You know, I wish  _ you _ were the red paladin and you weren't cursed and you could stay with us and help form Voltron instead of constantly trying to-”

The lamp at his hip shattered, warm wax dripping down his side as the candle melted away. Lance jumped and stared down at it, horror pooling in his chest. No one had mentioned the lamp breaking, and Lance was too scared to turn around and see for himself what it meant. At least he still remembered Keith. That had to be a good sign, right?

“Keith?” Lance asked softly, his throat tight and voice ragged. He took a deep breath and turned to look at where Keith had been floating. Lance froze when he saw a man standing in front of him, the same height and build as Keith, but instead of the purple skin Lance had grown accustomed to, he looked distinctly more human. He wore the same fitted black bodysuit, though Lance noticed a bit more muscle definition.

“Done,” the man murmured, staring at his hands, his dark grey eyes wide.

“Holy crow,” Lance whispered, almost afraid to ask. “Keith?”

Keith looked up and nodded slowly, looking just as shocked as Lance.

The helmet dropped to the ground beside him as Lance reached out a hand to touch Keith's shoulder. He gasped when his hand met skin instead of simply going through Keith. “You're real.”

Keith shook his head, still dazed. “I can't believe you broke the curse by being too stubborn to let me go.”

Lance pulled him into a hug, laughing as he did. Keith tensed at the contact, but he returned the gesture after a moment. Lance gripped him tight, savoring the warmth and the sensation of Keith actually being real and solid and free. “I can’t believe you’re not an alien genie anymore.”

Keith rolled his eyes. “I told you I’m not-”

“Wasn’t,” Lance corrected, leaning back to send him a grin.

Keith paused and smiled. “Yeah. Wasn’t.” Lance could feel the rhythm of his pulse pause when he saw it, falling for that smile so hard, so fast it almost hurt when he looked back up at Keith. Honestly, it had to be unfair for a man with a mullet to look that perfect. “I wasn’t an alien genie in the first place.”

Lance chuckled. “Right. Just alien.”

Keith leaned down to pick up Lance’s helmet, still marveling over the simple ability to interact with his environment again. It took a few tries for him to grip it properly, but he finally managed to scoop it up and hold it out to Lance. “You should probably let the others know.”

“Oh! I…” He switched on the link and slipped it on. “Hey, I forgot to turn this back on!”

Hunk muttered a soft, “Seriously, man?”

Lance winced. “Sorry.”

“Are you in your lion yet?” Shiro asked, clearly biting back irritation of his own.

“Not yet, but I've got some good news,” Lance answered, glancing up at Keith, who was watching him carefully.

“Well, we could sure use some,” Shiro replied.

“I found the red paladin!” Lance announced, perhaps a bit too giddy, considering how serious the situation likely was just outside.

“What?” Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge asked simultaneously, each varying degrees of confused.

“It’s Keith!”

Shiro frowned. “Lance, what are you talking about?”

“I just wished for it and-” They dropped to the ground beside the transport to the Blue Lion, and Lance barely managed to dodge the shards of glass from the broken lamp. “Keith’s human!”

“Half-human,” Keith corrected from the ground, rubbing the back of his head. His landing hadn’t been as graceful as Lance’s. “I always was. The curse changed my appearance.”

Lance didn’t answer, but he did mentally note that new piece of information. “Allura, we need to get back up to the armor room. Then, we can take Keith to the Red Lion.” Lance glanced down at the mess beside him, glad to see Keith had also avoided any of the broken glass left scattered over the ground. “And we probably need to clean up the broken lamp down here.” He gingerly unhooked the broken top of the lamp from his armor. The red wax had already hardened along the side of his armor. Another thing he’d have to clean up later, probably.

“Go to your lion,” Allura instructed over the link. “Tell Keith to get back in the pod. I’ll take him to his armor.”

Lance relayed the message, and Keith nodded. “Okay.” He stood up slowly and took a hesitant step forward. Keith frowned, instinctively reaching out to brace himself against Lance’s shoulder when he nearly lost his balance. He cursed under his breath and straightened before taking taking another unsteady step towards the pod. Clearly, the decades as an incorporeal figure had taken their toll.

“You okay?” Lance asked, soft enough not to be transmitted over the communications link.

“Fine,” Keith snapped, frustrated at having to relearn something as simple as walking. His muscles were fine, he noticed, preserved in the condition they’d been in when he had been cursed. Unfortunately, his muscle memory had faded, which meant he had to remind himself how to balance and take steps without assistance.

“Take it easy.” Lance reached out to help steady him, brows furrowed in concern. “You’ve been a ghost for, what, hundreds of years?”

“Go to your lion.” Keith ground out, taking another, more stable step forward. “I’m fine.”

“Okay, okay.” Lance chuckled, taking a step back. “You’re grumpy as a human, too.”

“Half-human,” Keith reminded him, sounding a bit more grumpy than he would have liked.

“Still hot, though.” Lance grinned and winked, staying close enough to help if Keith needed it.

Keith turned away, annoyed that his body somehow hadn’t forgotten how to blush over his years under the curse’s influence. He managed to make it to the pod and pressed the button to send himself back up, though he wasn’t proud of the number of times he had to hold out his arms to keep his balance.

Lance waited until Keith was safe inside the pod, half-wondering if he imagined the color in Keith’s cheeks, before he hurried off to his lion. It felt strange already not having Keith beside him each leg of the journey, and he almost reached for the lamp on pure instinct when he stepped out of the transport. Still, Lance couldn’t complain, because each time he thought of Keith, he remembered that he’d somehow managed to keep his promise. He’d actually freed Keith, and now they were going to save the universe together.

Once Lance landed beside the Blue Lion, he paused to gently pat one of its legs. Despite Keith’s assurances, Lance couldn’t help but worry that his lion might not be thrilled at being so badly damaged. “Hey, Blue. Sorry I got you so smashed up. You did so great, though.”

A soft hum filled his mind, and once again, he could feel the hairs on his arms raise under his suit. Without entirely knowing why, he knew his lion had forgiven him, and he sagged forward in relief, resting the front of his helmet against the leg.

“Thanks, Blue,” Lance murmured. “You’re definitely the best lion.”

The Blue Lion flared to life as Lance climbed inside and an approving hum buzzed through him in response to his flattery.

“Yeah? I’m the best paladin?” Lance joked, pretending he understood his lion’s answers in his mind. “I thought so, but it’s nice that you agree.” He laughed when his lion purred in reply.

“Lance, you know we can hear you, right?” Pidge asked, rolling her eyes.

Lance jumped when her voice sounded in his ear. “I… I knew that.”

“Sure.” Keith teased, joining the link from his own helmet. “I guess I don’t have to ask if you’re in your lion yet.”

Lance settled into his seat. “Just got here.” His voice lowered. “Why? Miss me already, Keith?”

“Gross. Can you two not flirt over the public comm link?” Pidge grumbled.

“We’re not flirting,” Keith snapped.

“Not yet,” Lance corrected with a small smirk.

“Lance, you need to take me to the main Galra ship. We’re going after the Red Lion.” Keith pointedly ignored the comment as well as the blush that returned to his cheeks. He walked down the hall, back towards the pods. Shiro had helped him change into the paladin armor while Allura directed Pidge and Hunk from the control room. Walking was still a bit of a struggle, and Keith had to remind himself not to walk through objects as he’d grown so accustomed to doing. He seemed to have at least mostly mastered balance, but he was still afraid to try anything faster than a brisk walk yet. Holding his bayard was still a bit tricky, too. The fine motor controls of his fingers eluded him somewhat. He hoped he could manage to fly his lion once they found it.

“Okay.” Lance nodded, piecing together the plan in his mind. “What’s everyone else doing?”

“Trying really, really hard not to die,” Hunk answered, tense and on edge as he dodged another Galra ship.

Lance winced. “Hang in there, buddy.” At least now he knew they had a fighting chance.

“I’m headed your way, Lance.” Keith said over the link, daring to try for a jog down the hallway. He reached the pod and breathed a sigh, leaning against the side. “I’ll be there soon.” Moving was much harder than he remembered.

“Hurry,” Hunk added on, yelping when a hit grazed the side of his lion.

Moments later, Keith arrived in the Blue Lion’s hangar, a bit out of breath and a bit bruised from falling off the zipline.

“Hold on!” Lance called out to Keith, flashing him a grin and a wink.

Keith barely managed to grab onto the back of the pilot’s seat before Lance took off out of the hangar. “You still have no idea how to fly this, do you?”

Lance waved a hand. “Don’t worry! Blue’s got this.”

“Unbelievable,” Keith muttered.

“Aw, thanks, babe.”

Keith grimaced. “Don’t call me babe.”

“Thanks, hot stuff.”

“Seriously? That’s worse!” Keith snapped, his grip on the seat back tightening.

“Lance, save the awful nicknames for when we’re not in danger, please,” Shiro deadpanned over the link.

“Sorry, Shiro. We’re on our way,” Keith answered, sending Lance a glare. Lance couldn’t even pretend to be embarrassed as he soared out into the space around the castle.


	10. The Red Lion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance retrieve the Red Lion.

Of course, the lingering good mood from finally freeing Keith faded somewhat when Lance saw the way the Green and Yellow Lions were frantically dodging an alarming amount of ships firing at them and the castle.

“Okay, we’re outside. Can you guys keep them distracted?” Lance asked, doing his best to stay out of sight as the other lions fought against the Galra ships. 

“Not for long!” Hunk shot back, wincing when a shot grazed the side of his lion.

“We’ll be there soon,” Lance assured them.

“Good, cause once this is done, I’m zapping you again for making me sit through your awful version of sweet talk,” Pidge commented as her lion bit down and threw away a ship that had been targeting Hunk.

“Looking forward to it,” Lance joked, relieved to hear Pidge at least had kept her sense of humor.

Despite a couple of close calls, Lance and Keith managed to dodge and avoid detection long enough to land and board the main ship. They landed on the underside of the ship, away from the main battle. Keith grabbed his bayard, concentrating more than he wanted to admit on simply keeping his grip stable as it transformed into a sword. Lance sent him a thumbs up, already holding his transformed bayard. They slipped inside, and Lance quickly took care of two sentries that almost saw them.

“Allura, do we know where the lion is?” Lance asked softly, still watching for any movement down the hall.

“No,” she answered immediately. “We can pinpoint it to the ship, but we don’t have any further details.”

“It’s okay. We’ll find it.” Keith took a steadying breath and stepped away from the wall. “It feels close.”

“Okay, which direction?” Lance glanced over at him.

Rather than answer, Keith closed his eyes and searched for a sign of his lion. He knew it was there. He could feel it tugging at him, the pull resonating deep in his chest. It took a moment of quiet for him to pinpoint the direction, but when he did, Keith hurried down the hall after it. He was still a bit unsteady on his feet, and Lance followed close behind, ready to help if Keith needed it. Keith took a breath and tried for a run, heading straight for the sensation of the Red Lion tugging at him from across the ship.

He stumbled, and Lance caught up in time to catch him, but Keith was more frustrated than grateful. After years as a warrior before he was cursed, Keith had come to rely on his strength and agility. Losing that, even knowing he’d gain it back once he’d relearned how to control his body again, was just one more reason to hate Zarkon.

“Falling for me already?” Lance joked, lightening the mood, and Keith couldn’t contain the short burst of laughter that spilled out of him in response. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Careful,” Keith straightened. “You keep it up, and Pidge is gonna zap you twice.”

They settled for a jog down the hallway, Lance taking out anyone they encountered, and Keith guiding them towards room where he knew the Red Lion was located. Along the way, Keith managed to cut off one mechanical sentry’s arm, mostly by accident, which only served to irritate him more. Another skill he’d have to relearn.

When they arrived, the room was empty. Lance couldn’t decide if it was a trap or just luck, but he watched Keith’s back either way. 

“Why wouldn’t they guard the Red Lion?” Lance asked, glancing around, ready to fire at any sign of attack.

“Don’t know.” Keith approached slowly, resting a hand on the barrier and looking up at his lion. “Guess they didn’t expect us to get in.”

Lance frowned, watching the doorway. “Not to rush you, but they’re probably gonna be here any second.”

Keith didn’t answer. He just stared into his lion’s eyes, not even flinching when a soft rumbling filled his mind and an electric sensation sizzled under his skin. The barrier felt hot under his touch, but Keith stayed calm and determined, ready to prove himself to his lion. He knew that it was waiting for him to make his case, to show exactly why he was worthy of piloting the Red Lion. “I am your paladin.” Keith’s voice was soft, breaking the challenging silence between him and his lion.

“Keith!” Lance yelped at the sight of Galra soldiers suddenly flooding the room. He shot a few and laid down cover fire to protect Keith. “Hurry up!”

“Let me in.” Keith whispered, pushing against the barrier and pushing down the panic rising in his chest. “Come on, they need us.”

The lion remained stubbornly encased in its barrier, seemingly unimpressed, and Lance shouted another warning. Keith turned, and a shield formed over his free arm. He caught a few shots with it and managed to actually take down one of the sentries Lance missed, but his attention was still focused on the lion that wouldn’t accept him.

Once they’d dealt with the influx of enemies, Keith stormed over to the barrier and pounded on its surface. “I’m part of this stupid team, and they’re going to die if you don’t work with me. Now, open up!”

The Red Lion growled at him, and Keith stared it down again, seconds away from growling back out of sheer frustration.

“I promise I’ll treat you better than Lance treats Blue if you let me in.”

“Hey!” Lance shouted from behind him.

The barrier melted under Keith’s hand, and he smirked. “I should have figured that would work.”

“Hey, I treat Blue great!” Lance yelled, running to Keith’s side.

“When you’re not wrecking it, yeah.” The Red Lion bent down to allow him to walk in easily, and Keith murmured a soft thanks while he entered the control room.

Lance followed close behind, grumbling softly.

Keith slid into the pilot’s seat and smirked. “Let’s show him how to  _ actually _ pilot a Lion, Red.” The sound of the Red Lion roaring to life drowned out Lance’s protests, and Keith quickly acquainted himself with the controls. Luckily, the Red Lion was very intuitive when it came to flying, and he still remembered the basics well enough to take off and soar over to the Blue Lion without trouble.

Lance prepared to leave, sending Keith a half-hearted glare. “You owe me an apology, you know! I’m a great pilot!”

“Not a chance.” Keith chuckled. “But you will be.”

Lance smiled as he dropped down into his lion, blushing slightly at the open sincerity in Keith’s voice.

“We’ve found all the lions, Princess,” Keith reported as her face appeared in the corner of his display. “I just dropped Lance off at the Blue Lion.”

“Everyone, back to the Castle. We need all of your lions to retrieve the Black Lion.” Allura smiled. “Excellent work, all of you.”

Hunk sighed. “Finally.” He and Pidge raced back to the relative safety of the Castle’s barrier, followed by Lance and Keith.

Shiro met them outside the Black Lion’s room, and with an earsplitting roar, the barrier broke down. Soon, all five lions were soaring out to face the massive Galra ships, and after a few missteps, the team formed Voltron and successfully destroyed the ships attacking the Castle. They landed and met back up with Allura and Coran in the main room.

“Great work, everyone,” Shiro said, grinning down at each of them.

“Keith, welcome back to humanity, buddy!” Hunk hugged him, and Keith tensed at the contact.

“Sorry.” Hunk backed off immediately. “I should’ve asked or-”

“No, it’s fine.” Keith reached out to touch his shoulder. “Just not used to actually touching people.”

Hunk tugged him into another hug. “I’m just glad we don’t have to forget you, man.”

Keith patted his back, still a little stiff, but relaxing bit by bit. “Me, too,” he murmured, briefly glancing over at Lance.

Pidge prodded his arm. “So, what happened?”

Hunk stepped back as Keith shrugged. “Ask Lance.”

Allura turned to Lance. “Yes, how did you break the curse?”

“I just wished he was the red paladin and wasn’t cursed and could stay with us.” Lance looked over at Keith. “He wanted me to use my last wish to find the red paladin, and I snapped. I didn’t think it would really work.”

“Fascinating.” Coran looked Keith over. “What happened then?”

“The lamp shattered, and the candle melted.” Keith indicated the bits of red wax still clinging to Lance’s armor. “The wax got everywhere.”

“I wonder why your wish worked.” Allura frowned. “We tried so many times.”

“Does he still have any of his powers?” Coran asked, examining the wax on Lance’s side.

“Hm. Let’s see.” Lance smirked and turned to Keith. “I wish you’d kiss me.”

Keith folded his arms over his chest and scowled. “Lance.”

“Try asking for something he actually wants next time,” Pidge teased.

“We’ll have to investigate this a bit more later, but for now, everyone go get some rest.” Allura stepped up to the map. “The Galra are sure to return soon, and you’re going to need to train to ensure you can face them.”

Pidge nodded. “I’m going to check on my family first.”

Coran clapped a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll show you where they are.”

“I’d like to go, too,” Shiro walked over to join them.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen Matt in a while. Can I come?” Hunk asked.

Pidge beckoned for them to follow as Coran led all three out.

“So,” Lance slung an arm over Keith’s shoulders. “I guess that just leaves the two of us, then.”

“I’m still here.” Allura reminded him with a sharp look.

“Don’t worry, princess, we’re leaving.” Keith stepped away from Lance. “Where are the sleeping quarters?”

“Down the hall. You’ll see-”

“We’ll find them. Don’t worry.” Lance grabbed Keith’s hand and led him out the door.

“Lance!” Keith frowned, but he followed anyway.

“Besides, we can’t sleep yet. We have to celebrate!” Lance shot Keith a wide smile. “You finally admitted you’re part of the team!”

Keith groaned. “Seriously?”

Lance chuckled, pausing to look back at Keith. “Plus, now I don’t have to forget you.”

Keith stopped, his chest tightening as he met Lance’s eyes. Everything about Lance’s tone and posture spoke volumes about just how much he’d desperately wanted to keep Keith around. Lance squeezed his hand, and Keith could feel his heart contract in time with the motion. “Yeah.”

“And now you’re stuck with me.” Lance tugged him down the hall.

“I’m pretty sure you’re going the wrong way,” Keith said, raising a brow.

“I know where I’m going.”

“Like you knew how to pilot the Blue Lion?” Keith teased.

Lance rolled his eyes. “Look, we won, didn’t we? You need to let that go.”

Keith snorted. “You wish.”

Lance laughed, and Keith couldn’t hold back a smile at the sound. They ran down the hall, and while Keith was positive Lance would never find the sleeping quarters on his own, somehow it was much easier to believe that an offhanded wish for an adventure really would lead them to victory against Zarkon.

“Is this a library?” Lance asked, peeking inside.

Eventually.

**Author's Note:**

> [Also posted on tumblr under klance-my-way!](http://klance-my-way.tumblr.com/post/157452218445/make-a-wish-chapter-1-space-lamp)


End file.
